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A Swiss International Air Lines plane spit flames from one of its engines while attempting takeoff at Boston Logan International Airport.
SWISS flight 55 was accelerating on the runway to depart for Zurich, Switzerland, when a burst of fire shot out of its right engine, video footage shows. An explosive boom then sounded, and smoke formed behind the aircraft.
‘Just head the sound, uh-oh,’ a person is heard saying in the footage.
‘Big smoke cloud back there.’
The Airbus A330-300 aborted takeoff around 6.25pm on Tuesday due to ‘engine issues’, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
‘We’re about halfway down the runway when all of a sudden, there’s kind of a boom noise and a big jolt, so the plane jolts forward,’ a passenger, Molly Furrer, told NBC Boston.
‘I could feel the plane braking and then started to skid down the runway until it came to a complete stop.’
The plane’s wheels never left the ground. The plane came to a halt and emergency vehicles approached on the tarmac.
‘We can confirm that on flight LX55 from Boston to Zurich, there was a problem with the right engine during takeoff,’ stated SWISS on Wednesday.
‘The crew immediately aborted the takeoff. The passengers were able to disembark the aircraft regularly after it had taxied back to the gate.’
There were 223 passengers and 13 crew members aboard. No one was injured.
What caused the engine problem was not immediately known and is under investigation by the FAA.
‘Depending on the problem with an engine, it is possible that a flame may be visible for a brief moment,’ stated the airline.
A temporary ground stop was placed at the airport while the plane was examined.
Passengers departed on another plane for Zurich and the trip was delayed by five hours.
‘We deeply regret the inconvenience caused to passengers by this incident,’ stated SWISS.
It happened after after an Airbus A321 operated by American Airlines spewed fire from an engine and left a smoke trail shortly after taking off from Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas in June.
And in July, a Sun Country Airlines Boeing 737 plane shot flames and sparks from an engine after departing from Los Angeles International Airport.
No one was injured in either incident.
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